New Book by Harvard Business School's Robert S. Kaplan Now Available

Harvard Business Review Press is pleased to announce the publication of WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO LEAD: The Power of Thinking and Acting Like an Owner by Harvard Business School professor and Senior Associate Dean Robert Steven Kaplan. The book will be released as an e-book on August 11, in advance of the book's hardcover release on September 15.

In the book, Kaplan - a successful business executive, leadership expert, and bestselling author of WHAT TO ASK THE PERSON IN THE MIRROR (2011) and WHAT YOU'RE REALLY MEANT TO DO (2013) - demystifies leadership and explains what it really means, how it can be learned, and why an ownership mindset is essential.

Leadership is one of the most important aspects of our society, yet there is enormous disagreement and confusion about what leadership means, and whether it can really be learned. Kaplan argues that leadership qualities are not something you either have or you don't. Leadership is about what you do, rather than who you are, and it starts with an ownership mind-set. For Kaplan, learning to lead involves three key elements: thinking like an owner; a willingness to act on your beliefs; and a relentless focus on adding value to others.

Kaplan writes that great organizations are built around a nucleus of people who think and act with an ownership mind-set. He believes that leadership is not a role reserved only for those blessed with the right attributes or situated in the right positions of power. Leadership is accessible to each of us-today. It requires a process of hard work, willingness to ask questions, and openness to learning.

WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO LEAD aims to demystify leadership and outlines a specific regimen that will empower you to build your leadership skills. Kaplan tells real-life stories from his own experience of working with various types of leaders seeking to improve their effectiveness and make their organizations more successful. He asks probing questions, provides exercises, and suggests concrete follow-up steps that will help you develop your skills, create new habits, and move you toward reaching your unique leadership potential.

WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO LEAD will help readers develop their capacity to lead by unlocking their power to think and act like owners.

For more information or to pre-order the book, please click here.

ABOUT ROBERT S. KAPLAN

Robert Steven Kaplan is Senior Associate Dean and the Martin Marshall Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He is also cochairman of the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, a global venture philanthropy firm, as well as chairman and a founding partner of Indaba Capital Management. Before joining Harvard in 2005, Kaplan was vice chairman of the Goldman Sachs Group. He divides his time between Boston and New York City.

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